Concrete Angel
by ohaidevyn
Summary: Alex had never had it easy. Right when she was about to give up on everything, she met him. He saved her, and her life changed forever.
1. Chapter 1

"_MOMMY, NO! STOP HURTING HER! HIT ME INSTEAD!" _

"_Shut u-up you little brat, go t-to your room now."_

"_No! No, I'm not leaving so you can hurt her more! GO AWAY, MOMMY!"_

"_What the hell is going on in here…?"_

"_NO! Daddy, GO AWAY!" I was screaming as hard as my small lungs could handle, terror filling me more and more with every step he took in my direction._

"_Stop crying, now." He grabbed a chunk of my matted hair and yanked, hard. I continued crying._

"_I said STOP CRYING!" _

"_OWCH DADDY, STOP IT, STOP HITTING ME! STOP! STOP!"_

…

"Hey, are you going to sleep all day? Wake up Alex!"

I jolted up off of my lumpy bed immediately and turned to the voice that had awoken me. It was my uncle.

"I'm sorry, I apologize. I'm awake now…"

"Yeah, be sure to stay awake, I'm going to need you later on for some house work. I'll call you down when I'm ready." He slammed the door behind him and I waited until I could no longer hear his footsteps to finally sit back down on the bed.

I glanced at the clock on the wall across from me. 9:30 am. It was a Sunday morning, so it's not unusual that I have to do the housework. My aunt works and my uncle usually goes out and runs errands. I turned away from the clock and let my head fall slightly. That's when the tears slowly began to pour. Not because of my uncle yelling or the housework, but because of the dream I had. Or, I guess a better term for it would be a nightmare.

It's kind of sad, really. I've had that same nightmare for the past five years, and even though I've had it so many times I always end up crying. It isn't like it's just your average nightmare where your brain just thinks up something bad and has you experience it for the night. Mine was real, at one point. I guess that's why I can't stop crying afterwards.

For the whole beginning of my childhood, actually, that nightmare I keep having now was my reality.

My mom was an alcoholic and whenever she would get drunk, which was basically every single night; she would beat me and my younger sister, Grace. Grace had short curly chocolate brown hair, and her eyes which would always have black and blue marks around them from our parents, were a baby blue color. My dad, well, he didn't really drink. He did beat us though. The nights my mom wouldn't come home he would hurt us in her place. Sometimes, they would abuse us together. I guess it was probably how they bonded or something. At least that's what they had said. Our father didn't beat us as frequently as our mother did, because he worked almost every day. But, when he was home and available to, he put in all of his might. Not to mention he was a lot stronger than our mom. I can't help but remember almost every detail, no matter how hard I try to forget. On the days that our parents weren't home, I would hide in the basement with Grace.

I don't live with Grace anymore. After a big incident with our parents, she was sent away from me and we were separated. She went to a foster home. They refused to tell me which one, and I'm still confused as to why that was. Instead of going to a foster home, I was taken in by my Aunt Emma and Uncle Carton. I still have plenty of fairly visible marks from the event that separated me and my sister. They're mainly on my neck, stomach, and legs. There are only a couple scattered on my arms and face.

I'm 13 years old now. I'm still pretty young, but I see myself as an adult. I feel as though I've been through enough to be referred to as one, as well. Not that I want pity for the things I've been through. I hate pity, it makes me feel weak.

"Alex, come on down here! I'm ready for you!" I heard my uncle yell up the flight of stairs that led to my bed room.

"Alright, I'll be down in a second Uncle Carton!"

"Hurry up now, you hear me?!"

I just nod my head in reply, even though I know that he can't see me. I wiped the stray tears from my face and stood up from the bed. My room isn't the biggest, but that's fine with me. It has the essentials, a bed, dresser, and desk. I've been saving up money for a computer for awhile now. I almost have enough!

I threw on a pair of pastel green ankle-length socks and my black converse and ran down the stairs, even though I was still dressed in my pajamas. When I made my way down the set of 28 steps, I found my uncle waiting for me impatiently in the living room.

"Sorry, Uncle."

"That's fine, Alex." He slowly started to get off of the couch he had been resting on. "Be quicker next time. Anyways, here's the list of chores I need finished by 2:00. Your aunt is getting home early today, that's why you need to be quick. I'm going out to run some errands. I expect you'll be finished by the given time, right?"

"Uh, y-yes Uncle. See you then." I said as I bowed.

When he finally made his way out the door, I browsed through the list of chores, then looked at the living room's clock. It's already 10:30?!

"How does he expect me to finish all this by 2:00?" I thought to myself. The list consisted of washing the living room, kitchen, and bathroom floors, drying them, vacuuming their bedroom floor, making their bed, giving the cat a bath, washing and drying the dishes, washing both mine and my aunt and uncle's clothes, folding and returning all of them to the correct drawers, sanitizing the counter tops, feeding the cat, and mowing the lawn.

Today's going to be a long day.


	2. Chapter 2

Everything is blurry; I can only tell that it's relatively dark. My muscles are still weak from sleep, which makes it hard for me to move my arm. I eventually move it high enough to where I can touch my face. It's wet. So that's why everything is blurry, I'm crying again.

"I must have had that same nightmare again," I whispered to myself.

I gently wiped the tears from my face so I could see clearly while slowly turning my head just enough to check the time on the clock. It was only 5:30 in the morning. My muscles also ache from the day before. I carefully started stretching my arms and legs, and cringed at how sore they were. Once my muscles were loose enough to the point where I could move without hurting, I got out of bed. I took a quick glance at the calendar I keep on the wall next to my clock, it was Monday.

I tiptoed to my dresser that's situated on the far wall of my bed room. I opened the drawer at the top and pulled out a dark grey v-neck. I closed the compartment, moved on to the third one, and yanked out a pair of jeans. I threw my pajamas I was wearing into the hamper that's inside of my closet and quickly changed into the clothes I removed from the dresser. I went back to the closet and grabbed a jacket and a scarf and threw them on. I made my way over to my door which is where I keep my shoes, and decided on wearing my dark grey ankle boots.

I only do this every once in a while. Whenever I wake up earlier than I need to, I'll sneak out of the house and skip half of the school day. I go back when lunch is just starting, so I miss most of my least favorite classes. The ones I have after lunch is over are Art and English, which are my favorites, and Science, too.

I walked over to my bed because my only window in my room is above it. I hopped on the mattress and sat on the window pane. For a couple of seconds I dangled my feet from the window and looked out at the large town, but when one of my boots fell from my foot and landed into a bush, I figured it was time to go. I leaped from the window and landed in the same bush as my fallen shoe did. The fall still sends a chill through my spine when I land, but I've for the most part gotten used to it.

I grabbed my boot and put it back on my foot, and also fixed my scarf and jacket. I ducked into the bush again and looked around me to make sure nobody saw me jump from my window. There wasn't a person in sight.

"Phew!" I sighed and started to climb out of the bush.

Whenever I do end up skipping half of the school day, I whip up some lame excuse to tell my Aunt and Uncle later on so they aren't mad at me for not being home in the morning. It's usually something like, "I had to go to school early to finish a project!" or "My clock was set for the wrong time so I left earlier than I thought I was!"

I tell my teachers the same thing every time, though. It's, "I wasn't feeling good earlier, but I feel better now." For some reason they always believe me. They must think I look sickly, then. Oh well.

"Where to go, where to go…"

I usually go to the same place every time I skip school, the big willow tree at the center of some run down park by the river. The actual playground is pretty trashy, I have to admit, but the willow tree is almost right at the edge and overlooks the river, it's so relaxing. That's why I usually go there, I like lying under the willow tree, looking at the calm and crystal clear water, and just relaxing.

There are other times where I don't feel like lying under the tree, so I'll take a walk around the town instead. The town is pretty large, I'd say. I only live a couple blocks away from the old park, which is another reason I like going there instead. It's so close to home.

"Hmm… I think I'll take a quick walk around town, then I'll spend the rest of the time I have under the tree!" I concluded.

Before I knew it, I was already at the busiest part of the town! There are plenty of clothing and food shops. I saw a frozen yogurt store at the corner of the block, and decided I'd stop in there.

I put my hand into my pocket and gathered up all of the money that was in it.

"One… two… five dollars and fifty cents!" I shouted proudly. A couple people that were passing by gave me a strange look, but I pretended not to notice. I have enough money for a small frozen yogurt, and left over money for lunch!

I stepped into the frozen yogurt store; it was called TCBY, or The Countries Best Yogurt. A kind woman greeted me and asked if I was interested in a sample, but I just shook my head. I knew exactly what I wanted. I grabbed a small dish and went up to the cake batter flavor. I poured it to the top of the container, skipped the toppings, and paid for my dessert.

"That will be… $3.00, please!"

"Here you go." I gave the cashier the money and made my way to the door. The same woman that greeted me gave me a pleasant smile and said, "Have a great day, Ma'am!" I just smiled back.

"Okay, time to go to the willow tree!" I said to myself, as I started walking down the street.

I looked down into my cake batter flavored frozen yogurt and started to wish I didn't skip the toppings! I went to take a spoonful when…

BAM!

"Ouch!" I heard a male voice shout.

I opened my eyes to see a boy about my age rubbing his arm and wearing my frozen yogurt!

"I-I'm so so so sorry! Here, let me get that!" I started to get up and pull some napkins out of my pocket that the cashier from TCBY gave me to wipe my yogurt from his shirt. He held out his hand to help me up off of the ground and I noticed that he didn't look angry anymore. He actually had a smile on his face! I took his hand gratefully and stood up. I guess I had bumped into him while I was looking into my yogurt and fell on the ground. I must have looked like such an idiot!

I took the napkins and started wiping the spots that had cake batter yogurt on them, "Thanks for helping me up, but again, I'm really really sorry for, well, this!" I said, pointing at his shirt.

"It's not a problem." He was still smiling. Actually, his smile was growing larger every second, which confused me.

He had a perfect smile though, so I'm not complaining. His hair was a kind of indigo blue color, and his eyes were a couple shades lighter than that. He was a couple inches taller than me, not by much, though.

Without realizing it, a blush started to creep onto my face. He chuckled.

"Do you know where the school is? I was trying to find it before I bumped into you!" He said, his smile never leaving his face.

"Yeah, I know where it is. I go there." I answered.

"Well, if you are going there anytime soon… will you show me the way?!"

"Uh, well, I wasn't really going to go there right away. If you're in a hurry then you're asking the wrong person to escort you. I was going to go to the park and then go to school at lunch time." I stated as I started to turn away.

"That's fine!" he insisted, "I'll go to the park with you, and then you can show me the way when you leave… if that's okay with you!" He exclaimed, smile as big as ever.

"I guess I could, if you're okay with being really late!"

"I'm already late as it is and I need my shirt to dry from the yogurt accident anyways!"

"Well, okay then, let's go to the park!" I grabbed his hand and started to run in the direction of the playground with the willow tree.

Besides, how could I say no to that perfect smile?


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey, I don't think I caught your name back there!"  
I turned my head to the boy who was making his way over to me, "I guess you didn't."  
He laughed, and when he was standing in front of me, he held out his hand, "I'm Sky Mochizuki. And you?"  
I took his hand and answered him with my name, Alex Mullee.  
"Pleased to meet you, Alex," he said as he bowed, still holding my hand.  
I chuckled and gave a slight curtsy, then we both sat down in front of the willow tree.  
It only took us around five minutes to walk to the old park. When we frst got there, I sat in front of the tree and Sky walked over to the river. He put his hand into it, but took it out right after. It's the middle of fall, so the water's probably pretty cold!  
"Hey, Alex? I've been meaning to ask you, why aren't you at school? Are you skipping?" Sky turned his head towards me with a confused expression on his face.  
I yawned, "I guess you could say that. I woke up early so I decided to ditch my morning classes. I only do it every once in a while. It's not a big deal."  
"Oh, alright." He turned his attention back towards the water, and so did I.  
My eyes were getting heavier. I probably should have just slept in. Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.

"Alex? Hey, are you awake?" I heard a muted voice ask. I slowly started to open my eyes and When my eyes adjusted to the light, all I could see was the glassy river water. How nice.  
"...Alex?" I turned my head in Sky's direction, and gave him a slight smile.  
"Oh, good! You're awake! Hey- are you crying?" I made a confused look and touched my face with my left hand. _Tears_.  
"Uh, yeah I guess I was. It isn't a big deal though. What time is it?" I quickly changed the subject and wiped the remaining tears from my face.  
"It's 12:47, but are you sure you're alright?"  
"I told you, I'm fine. And oh no! Lunch will be over soon, we have to get to school! Come on!" I quickly grabbed his hand and started to jog in the direction of the school building.  
When we got there, Sky just stood in amazement. It is a pretty big school, but it's nothing special.  
"Welcome to Kyoya High School, Sky!" I said in a more sarcastic tone.  
"It looks awsome," He gleamed.  
"Trust me, it's nothing special." I whispered. I know it's a nice school. There's four floors, two cafeterias, two art rooms, and  
3 gyms. It's pretty huge, actually. The people there hate me though, so I don't care about it's size. I can't wait to leave, and I'm not even inside yet!  
"Will you show me around when we get in?" He pleaded.  
"Sky, I don't know if you're in my class or not, and I can't have the principal catch me sneaking in! If you're in my class, I'll show you around. For now, I can only walk you to the principals office, okay?"  
"Okay, sounds fair enough."  
I led him up the stairs into the building. He held the doors open for me, and continued following me through the halls. When we got to the first set of stairs, a group of girls walked by us.  
They were whispering things like, "Look it's scars," and "Why doesn't she just leave?"  
People call me scars here, because of the scars I have on my arms, neck, and forehead left on me from my parents.  
When they passed us and were far enough behind so they couldn't hear, Sky asked what their problem was.  
"People here don't like me. It's fine though," I said with a shaky voice. I tell myself it doesn't bother me, and try to act like it, but it actually  
does. It hurts, but I can't do anything about it other than fake a smile. Which I did, when I turned around and gave a small smile for reassurance.  
"Oh," was his only reply.  
We walked in silence the rest of the two flights of stairs. A couple more people passed us every now and again, whispering about me every time.  
When we finally got to the principals office on the third floor, we both stopped in front of the door.  
"Here's where I need to get going. Maybe I'll see you later, good luck!" I said enthusiastically. He gave me a small smile and said thanks for everything, and proceeded walking into the office. I turned around when he closed the door and walked down a flight of stairs, and made a left turn. I walked half way down the hall before reaching the colony of lockers where mine was located. I put my combination into the lock, and opened the locker. It should still be lunch time, so I decided on going down to art a couple minutes early. I grabbed my sketch book and pencil off the top shelf and closed and locked the locker.  
The art room I have class in is on the bottom floor. I walked down the last flight of stairs and headed towards the class room. I knocked on the art room's door, then saw my teacher, Mr. Suncin, walking in my direction to unlock the door. He welcomed me in and held the door open for me.  
"Morning Mr. Suncin."  
"You're lucky, there's still ten minutes left of lunch. Why don't you get your things together?"  
I nodded my head in agreement and walked over towards the supply closet. I grabbed some watercolor paints and colored pencils, and proceeded over to my seat in the back corner.  
"Hey Alex, have you heard that there's a new student starting today?" Mr. Suncin questioned.  
"Yes, do you happen to know wha-"  
BEEP!  
Before I could finish asking if he knew what class the new pupil would be in, the lunch bell rang. Great, here comes my class.  
I opened my sketchbook as the class piled into the room, roaring with conversation. Nobody seemed to notice, nor care, that I was in the room.  
I began to draw a light sketch in my book as the class began to settle down. I rested the side of my head on my hand, getting more into my drawing.  
Mr. Suncin made his way to the front of the classroom and tried to calm down the remainder of the class that was still talking, but he was interupted by the phone ringing.  
I could only hear parts of the conversation, what with everyone talking once again.  
"Hello? Oh, that's great! Yes, okay. Yup, send him down," is all I heard.  
I turned my attention back towards my picture, thinking the phone call was nothing more than a late student being sent to class.  
"Excuse me, children. I have an announcement," the art teacher began, "As you all might have heard, we are getting a new student today. He should be here any moment now, so I want you all to give him a nice welcoming. Understood?" He finished.  
The class gave random nods here and there. Mr. Suncin sighed and walked towards his desk in the front corner of the room.  
Once again, I tried to re-focus on my sketch when I heard the door in the front of the room open. I lifted my head up to meet the intruder's eyes, and it just so happend to be Sky! He didn't see me at first, because I was way in the back of the room, but when his eyes finally landed on me he gave a huge grin.  
"Welcome! I take it you're the new student!" Mr. Suncin greeted.  
"Yeah, that's me," he answered, turning towards the teacher.  
"Why don't you tell everyone your name, son?"  
"Oh, well, I'm Sky. Sky Mochizuki." He answered, giving a big grin again.  
"Nice to have you here, Sky. Why don't you take a seat."  
Sky nodded and looked around the room. Some students asked if he wanted to sit next to them, but he turned them down. He started making his way towards the back of the room where I was. He grabbed the seat right next to me and gave me a small, confused smile, "Why are you way back here?"  
I sighed and answered," I like it back here, nobody really bugs me."  
"Oh." He looked kind of dissapointed.  
"You know you don't have to sit back here if you don't want to, right?"  
He looked at me kind of funny. "I chose to sit back here."  
"Alright. You might want to get to work, though. We're working on water coloring. You can use my pencils if you want," I pushed my water color pencils towards him.  
"Okay, thanks! Can I borrow a sheet of paper, too?!"  
I nodded and ripped out a sheet of paper from the back of my sketchbook. He thanked me and got right down to work. So did I, at least, I tried too.  
"Hey, Sky was it? Do you want to come sit with me and my friends up front?" A girl named Kate had walked over and sat at the desk in front of Sky's.  
She was one of the popular, pretty girls in my class. She acts like the world revolves around her. I'm not a big fan of her.  
"Thanks for the offer, but I want to sit back here." Sky gave her a big smile. Not a sarcastic one, though. A sincere one. I don't know how he can be so nice to everyone.  
"Oh. Okay, sorry for bugging you, then," Kate said, giving me a dirty look as she walked back over to her click. Her group of friends consists of two other girls and two other guys. Kate has short, raven colored hair, and a hazy grayish purple eye color.  
I just rolled my eyes and went back to my picture.  
There were no more interuptions for the remainder of the class period. I got the overall sketch finished and was half way through outlining it when the bell rang. I closed my sketch book and gathered all the colored pencils and paints together.  
Mr. Suncin shouted, "Oh no Alex, I'll put away the supplies! You'll be late for your next class again, hurry along."  
"Oh, thanks alot!" I shouted running towards the exit. Everyone else was already at their lockers, but Sky had stayed and waited for me at the art room's door.  
He pointed his finger at me and said, "Hey! You told me that if we were in the same class, you'd show me around!"  
I sighed. "I'll show you around now, we just have to make sure it's okay with Mr. Daley."  
"Mr... who?" Sky scratched the side of his head, looking pretty confused.  
"The science teacher. Let's go, he'll never let us if we're late!" I grabbed Sky's hand and ran up the stairs to my locker, and quickly switched over my sketch book for my text book and folder.  
Sky followed me down the hall until I stopped in front of a class's door. I looked at him and said, "This is it."  
We both entered a split second before the bell rang.  
I coughed a little bit to clear my throat, "Hello, Mr. Dunkin. I have a little favor to ask!"  
The science teacher walked over to where me and Sky were standing. "Just what might that favor be, Mullee?"  
"Well, Sky still doesn't know where all of his classes are, because he just came last period. He's new."  
"I see, go on."  
I rubbed the back of my head, "So I was kind of wondering if I could show him around this period..."  
"Sure, go ahead. You are just going to have to work twice as hard tomorrow. Good luck." Mr. Daley walked to the front of his class and began to teach, so we left the room and started heading down the hall.  
"Well that was easier than I thought it would be," Sky stated. "He seems like a pretty okay guy."  
I just nodded. Hmm, where to start?  
"I guess we'll just start from the bottom and make our way up to the top of the building. We have to be done by this period, though. Mrs. Hughes, the english teacher, won't allow us to be late. She's super strict." I pointed out. Sky just nodded in agreement.  
***ONE CLASS PERIOD LATER***  
BEEP!  
"Great, right on time! Do you remember where the english room is, Sky?" I asked.  
"Yup, third floor, right?"  
"Correct! I need to run to my locker and get my stuff. See you there!" I ran away and sped down the two flights of stairs, grabbed my notebook and pen, and ran back up one flight of stairs. I walked into the room right as the bell went off.  
"Class, take your seats, we have much to do today!"  
I walked to the back of the room where my seat was located and found myself scanning the room, looking for Sky.  
It took me a couple minutes because the size of our english class, but I found him. He's sitting in the middle row on the far side of the room.  
"Take out your notebooks, and copy the quote I have written on the board, then interpret it in your own words. We'll discuss in five minutes. I obeyed and copied and interpreted the quote. I looked up at the clock, school is almost over.  
For the rest of the class period I found myself continuously keeping my eye on the time. I just want to leave this place as soon as possible. Not that I want to go home. I think I might just return to the park after.  
I focused my eyes back on the clock, only three mintutes left. Mrs. Hughes announced that we can have the remainder of the class period to talk amoungst  
ourselves. Basically everyone turned to their friends and started making small conversation. I just sat there, staring at the clock. I could feel people staring at me, some chuckling in my direction. I hate the end of the day here. It's when everyone is in the halls with their friends. When everyone is the rudest. I can't stand the couple minutes I have to spend by my locker before heading home.  
BEEP!  
I cringed at the bell, and slowly gathered my things. Sky walked over towards me, "Are you okay? You seem kind of tense all of a sudden."  
"I'm fine." I said coldly, starting to walk out of the room. He caught up to me and walked by my side.  
As we were walking down the hallway, a couple kids bumped into me. When we turned the corner to go down the stairs, a girl rammed herself into me, making me fall onto the cold, hard floor. It was Kate. She just snickered in my direction and spat, "Be more careful next time, scars." I picked myself up off of the ground and started to run down the stairs, Sky following after me. I continued to run to my locker with Sky still behind me. I threw my things into the locker. A group of guys who were walking by made more comments about me, like, "Why is that guy hanging around her?" and "She's so gross, look at those scars!" and "She doesn't even have a nice body to make up for her face. And she's weird. She should just get lost."  
A single tear made it's way to my eye, but I quickly wiped it away, closed my locker, turned around, and gave Sky a warm, fake smile.  
"Why don't we go?" I asked, with the same fake smile plastered on my face. Some other kids walked by and sneered at me.  
"Yeah, okay." He agreed.  
We started walking down the street after we exited the school. Random groups of people were walking home together, like usual.  
"Hey look, it's scars!" a male voice shouted from somewhere far behind us. I shook a little, and Sky looked at me.  
"Uh.. Are they talking about you? I mean, when they say scars?" He asked, sounding kind of concerned.  
"Yes." I answered, trying to sound as calm as possible, but obviously failing.  
We walked in silence for a couple of minutes, until he turned to me and asked, "Hey, do you want to come over to my place?"  
I must have looked shocked, because he laughed and said, "Well, only if you want."  
I have to admit, I was pretty shocked. Nobody has asked me to go over to their house in about ten years!  
I giggled and said yeah. I want to meet his parents, anyway. I want to know what they're like.  
"Alex... you know that you can talk to me, right? I mean, if something's ever bothering you, I'll listen." He kind of mumbled, but I still heard him.  
I thought it was my imagination, though. I looked at him with wide eyes. Nobody has cared about me for years. I don't know what to say. My shocked look turned into a smug, sincere smile, "Thank you."  
He just smiled back at me.  
_Finally, I think I finally made a friend!_


	4. Chapter 4

We had been walking for a good 25 minutes now. I've got to be honest; I didn't think he would live this far away. My legs were getting kind of sore, so I finally asked, "Hey, Sky? How much longer until we get to your house?"

"Why? Are you tired already?" He teased.

"Hmph. Of course not! I was just wondering!" I accused.

He laughed a little and said, "Yeah, yeah. It's only a couple houses down, don't worry."  
I turned my head back to the sidewalk in front of me. I don't know why, but I feel kind of nervous. What if his parents don't like me? What if they think that I'm useless and don't allow Sky to talk to me anymore? Maybe I'm over thinking it, but I'd have to go back to being alone again. I'm not sure what the reason is, but I feel like I can be myself around Sky. _I feel safe_, and we only just met. Is that weird? I hope not...

"We're here!" He pointed at the large two story house in front of us.

"It's beautiful!" I gaped.

"You think so?"

"Yeah, of course!" I put my hands together and a smile crept onto my face. It really was amazing! I mean, some people might think it was nothing special, but I'm not used to anything this new looking! My aunt's house is two stories as well, but nothing like this. Our house looks like it's falling apart, and it's a dusty azure color. Sky's house, on the other hand, is a nice, clean and creamy white color, with gorgeous burgundy window shutters. There's shrubbery going around the perimeter of the house, and in the front there's also a nice garden. The garden has all of my favorite flowers! Lavender, roses, daisies, and daffodils. The front door was glossy, and the same color as the shutters.

Sky cleared his throat, trying to grab my attention, "Well, do you want to see the inside?"

I nodded my head and ran towards him as he walked up the steps to the door. He fiddled with the nob before opening it for me, "After you!"

I chuckled and stepped inside. I just stood there in awe. It's just as pretty on the inside!  
I slipped off my shoes and placed them on the mat where a couple other pairs of shoes were already placed. I continued to gaze at the interior of his home when I heard a female voice yell, "Sky is that you? How was your first day, honey?"

Sky sighed, "It was fine mom."

So his parents are home? Great! I can't wait to meet them! But I still am pretty nervous...

"Hey, ma! Is it okay if I have a friend over?" He shouted back in the direction of her previous call.

"You made a friend already? Sure! Bring him in!"

I gave Sky a skeptical look, and he just chuckled in response. She thinks I'm a guy! I hope she isn't disappointed...

He grabbed my hand and started up the stairs. I followed him as he turned the corner and made his way down the hall and knocked on a door. I was still taking in the surroundings, so I didn't realize that Sky's mom had already opened the door. Sky shook my arm to get my attention.

"Oh, this is your friend? My bad sweet heart, I figured you'd be a guy! I'm sorry, nice to meet you!" She held out her hand and gestured me to shake it, so I did.

"Hi ma'am, I'm Alex."

"Oh, where are my manners? My name is Mikayla, but you can call me Miki! If you want to, of course!" She suggested.

I laughed and agreed to refer to her as Miki.

"Sky's father is at work right now, he should be home for dinner. You're welcome to stay and eat with us!" Sky's mother gave me a welcoming smile. I turned to Sky with a look that just shouted _Can I pleasssee stay for dinner_! He must have gotten the point and nodded at me in agreement.

"Yeah, mom, she'll stay. I'm going to show her around, okay?"

His mother nodded and closed the door to her bedroom.

It didn't take a long time for him to show me around. _I still can't believe that I'm at a friend's house! It feels kind of nice_.

His house is an okay size. It has three bedrooms, a bathroom, dining room, kitchen, living room, laundry room, and play room. I was wondering why there was a bedroom that was suited for a toddler, and a play room, so I eventually asked him about it. He laughed and said that he has a little sister!_ I bet that she's super cute_!

"Where's your sister now?" I asked, going through one of Sky's game drawers.

"She's at daycare. My dad picks her up on the way home from work every day, except on weekends. That's when I watch her."

I grabbed a handful of games and started going through them, "What's her name?"

"Sophie. She's only two years old, her birthday is next month."

"How cute!" I put a couple of the games away, "So she's a November baby?"

"Yup, so am I." Sky lied down on his bed. I put the remainder of the games away, except one, "Cool! What day?"

He sighed, "Both of our birthdays are on the seventh."

I turned towards him, did some simple math in my head and shouted, "So you guys only have 18 days until then?"

"Yeah I guess so." He sat back up and stated, "I'm going to be 15!"

So he's 14 now. I'm 13, so even after his birthday there won't be much of an age difference. I just don't want him to grow up and leave me behind. I don't want to feel alone again, not after finally feeling cared for, even if it's only been a single day! I pulled one of his Xbox games out of the drawer again.

"Hey, do you wanna play this with me until dinner?" I said, placing the game I was originally holding back into the drawer.

He walked over and sat on the ground next to me. He observed the game I was holding in his face and eventually grabbed it out of my hand, "Sure, if you're not afraid to get your butt kicked!"

I smirked, _challenge accepted_.

**DING-DONG!**

That must be the doorbell, so his father and sister must be home!

"Ha ha! I told you I'd kick your butt!" Sky exclaimed, turning off the gaming system.

"Yeah, yeah, I've never played before. Once I get some practice I'll make you eat those words!" I yelled, pointing in his direction. I walked over to him and grabbed the game from his hand, put it in the case, and placed it back in the shelf.

"Sky, I'm home!" A male voice called. It must be his father.

Sky motioned me to follow him after he turned off the television. We walked down the stairs and at the front door there was a man and what seemed to be a young girl in his arms. As we got closer, I saw that it was his father and little sister. She was so cute!

"Oh, and who is this?" Sky's father questioned, pointing at me.

"This is Alex, I met her today at school, and well, before it. She helped me find the way there." Sky explained to his father.

I gave a warm smile and said, "Nice to meet you, sir."

"Nice to see Sky has a new friend already! Welcome to our house, Alex. You can just call me father, okay? Make yourself feel at home." Sky's dad said with warmth in his voice, setting down who must have been Sophie. The little girl looked at me strange. She started walking towards me, so I squatted down and said softly, "And you must be Sophie!"  
The closer she got, the slower she walked. She seemed uneasy. When she was finally standing right in front of me, she reached out her hand and touched the large bruise that was on my forehead and uttered, "Boo boo!"

I was shocked at first, especially when she continued to rest her other hand on my neck. My neck is where my biggest scar is. I gulped when she retreated her hands behind her back and tried to speak calmly, "Nice to meet you."

Her face seemed less worried, as a small smile grew on her face, "Hi sissy."

I giggled. Sky's father said that she must have taken a liking to me.

_She's the cutest thing_! I know she didn't mean to bring attention to my scars, she doesn't know any better. I'm just glad she actually likes me. She has short bluish black hair that's pulled back into two pigtails. Her eyes are big and wide, and the same color as Sky's. She's pretty pudgy, but it's just cute baby fat.

Sky's father grabbed Sophie's hand and said, "Come on you guys, dinner should be just about ready."  
I stood back up and nodded my head, following behind my new friend and his family.

In the dining room, I sat in the seat next to Sky and across from Sophie. Sky's father sat at the end of the table, and after his mom finished setting the table, she sat next to her daughter.

"Eat up!" Sky's mom announced.

They're having an actual family dinner, and_ I_ get to be a part of it! This is nice. I feel warm, _I feel at home_.

I placed two pieces of chicken on my plate, along with a scoop of mashed potatoes, corn, and a small bowl of salad. I haven't had yummy food like this in as long as I can imagine!

Sky's dad stood up from the table, "Does anyone want drinks?"

Sophie shouted, "Juice!" and Sky and his mother both asked for lemonade. I didn't want to be too much of a burden, so I just said I wasn't thirsty.

"You sure, Alex? We have plenty to drink!"

"No thank you, I'm really not thirsty right now." I reassured.

"Whatever you say, then." He said, leaving the room.

I continued to eat my food. After a couple minutes, Sky's dad returned with everyone's drinks. He placed them all on the table, and apparently got me one anyway!

"I got you a glass of water, just in case." Sky's dad put the clear glass in front of my plate for me to drink. I ended up drinking about half of it.

"Thanks so much for the food" I said after everybody started to stand. I helped Sky's mom clear the table and wash dishes. It was the least I could do, after all! As we were cleaning the last few plates and forks, Sophie ran up to me and tugged on my shirt.

"Sissy, play!" She exclaimed, trying to pull me towards her play room. I looked at Sky's mom for her approval.

"Go ahead, hun, you've helped enough!" She smiled, shooing me off to play with Sophie.  
"Dress up, sissy!" Sophie looked at me with big, happy eyes. She tugged me down the hall, passing Sky. I laughed and smiled at him as Sophie pulled me away from him. Sky just turned and followed us to the play room.

When we finally entered the large and colorful room, Sophie motioned me over to a wooden chest that was painted with multiple different colors. Sky came over and sat down next to the chest, helping Sophie open it. He leaned his elbow on the side of the wooden box and rested the side of his face on his hand.

Sophie pulled a tiara out of the chest, along with a wand and a pair of big pink pumps. "Pretty!" She shouted, shoving the items into my hands. I figured she wanted me to put them on, so of course I did. When I stood up, I must have been at least three inches taller, courtesy of the heels! The tiara fit pretty snug on my head, and I just kind of held onto the wand. Sky chuckled at my appearance when I almost fell over! Sophie put on a masquerade mask, some small dress up heels, and butterfly wings.

"Oh my, Sophie! You look beautiful!" I smiled as she spun around.

"You too, sissy!" She gleamed.

I laughed and thanked her. She then turned to her brother, pointed at him, and yelled, "Brother, too!"  
He pointed back at himself, "M-me?" He laughed as his sister placed a wizard hat on his head and gave him a wand. It was my turn to laugh at his silly apparel. He made a face at me and we both played the several different games Sophie wanted to play.

"Oh, Sky, what time is it?" I asked, walking towards him.

"Uhh..." He took out his phone and checked the time, "It's 7:30"

"Oh god! My aunt's going to kill me, I've got to get home, now!" I exclaimed, removing the heels and tiara and placing them back into the chest that Sophie had taken them out of.

"Sissy, stay!" Sophie pleaded, tugging on my shirt again.

I bent down to meet her height. "I'll come back again soon, okay?" I patted her head and handed her the wand that I was still holding.

She smiled, "Soon!" She hugged me, and after a couple seconds I returned her embrace. I stood back up when she left to return her dress up items.

"I can walk you home if you'd like, or I can have my parents drive you-"

"No no no! I can't have you do that! You've already done so much today! I'll just run home, thanks for everything!" I hugged Sky and started to race down the stairs. I passed the kitchen, but stopped and peered my head in when I saw that Sky's parents were in there.

"Thanks so much for everything, I'm leaving now. Bye!" I started to run to the door and slip on my shoes when I heard his parents yell goodbye to me.

I paused and smiled a bit to myself. I heard footsteps coming towards me, and I turned to see Sky walking my way.

"Thanks for playing with Sophie. You made her really happy."

I rubbed the back of my head, "No problem, she's too cute!"

"I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"Yeah, I'll go to school for the full day then. Thanks again, see ya!" I shouted, closing the door behind me. I ran down the steps, and started jogging down the street in the direction of my house. After five minutes of jogging, I decided to speed up into a run. It's probably around 7:45, I need to hurry-"

_OUCH!_

I fell to the pavement and smacked my head off of the ground. After a couple of seconds, I began to sit up and rub my head. _What happened_?

"What the hell? Oh, wait? Scars?" A female voice questioned.

Oh no.. is that... _Kate_? I shook my head, trying to clear my vision when I heard her begin to speak again.  
"It is you scars. What the hell are you thinking, running into me like that? I heard her footsteps getting closer to me, I tried scooting back, but I just fumbled over my hand and fell again. When I tried to get up, it was too late. I could finally see clearly again, and what I saw was Kate grabbing onto the collar of my shirt.

"You _bitch_, I can't believe you ran into me!" She shouted in my face. She began to pull her arm back, and my eyes widened in fear when I saw she was trying to punch me! She launched her arm forward at full speed and-


	5. Chapter 5

Her fist crashed into my jaw and I flew back and once again, smashed my head off of the sidewalk. When I tried sitting up, a wave of pain washed over me and I just fell back onto the ground. Kate ran over to me, grabbed hold of my shirt again, and continued punching me. She got me in the jaw another three times, and she aimed her, what I thought to be final blow, at my stomach. I gasped for air and relief, but none came. She got off of me, and I thought she was walking away, but then she turned back towards me.

"And _this_ is for running into me in the hall at school,_ scars_!" She screamed at me, followed by one agonizing kick to my temple, and another to my cheek bone.

I screamed out in pain, gripping my head with my hands and curling up into myself. I heard her chuckle through my screams, and after a couple of seconds she walked away. I coughed up what tasted like blood for a long time.

My voice began to get raspy, and eventually my muted screams turned into silent cries.

I laid on the ground, huddled up, my head throbbing with pain, for what seemed like decades.

_I'm going to be late, my aunt's going to be so angry. I haven't talked to her all day, what's she going to say when I get home? What about uncle? What time is it? Where's Kate? Is she really gone? Did this really happen? Am I dreaming? No. This pain is too real. I hope Sky is okay. And his mom, and dad. And Sophie. How am I going to get home? I can't move. My head. _

So many thoughts had run through my head, all at once. I slowly brought my left hand in front of my face and looked at it in a daze for a good five minutes. There was blood all over it. I pressed both hands on the ground and slowly raised myself up. Although my head was pounding and I felt as if I was going to throw up, I continued until I could see the wet, warm, red pool I had been laying on.

I started sobbing again, and dragged myself onto the nearest patch of grass. I laid down on the cool, freshly cut grass and cried. After thirty minutes, I tried to stand up again. My cries trailed off, I was only coughing up blood now.

I shakily stood up off of the grass. Immediately, I clenched my stomach with one hand, and grasped my head with the other.

It took awhile, but I eventually arrived at my aunt's house. By the time I got home, I thought my legs were definitely going to give out.

I crept into the house, shutting the door soundlessly behind me. I tiptoed into the living room, and faintly made my way up the stairs and into my bed room.

"_I'm surprised they weren't in the living room_." I thought to myself.

I stripped out of my blood-stained shirt and pants, after I returned my boots to their designated spot next to my door. I threw the clothing into my hamper, along with my socks and undergarments. I always keep a container of Advil on my dresser, so I grabbed a couple pills out of it and swallowed them, to help get rid of the aching pain in my head. I went into the dresser and got out clean pajamas.

I picked them up and brought them with me to my door, where my purple polka dotted towel was hung. I pulled it off of the door and wrapped myself in it, and proceeded down the hallway to the bathroom. There's an electric clock in the bathroom, so I checked the time. 9:30 pm.

"_That's why I didn't see them, they're asleep_." I thought, while setting my clothes and towel onto the sink.

My aunt and uncle are always in bed by 8:30. Never any later, though sometimes earlier. _I'm sure I'll get an earful from them in the morning, though. _

I turned and looked at myself in the mirror above the sink. My face had dry blood stained on it, all over. I turned my back to the mirror and tilted my head so I could see. My back was also covered in blood. Mostly by my shoulders and upper back, though. The sight of it was frightening. A few stray tears escaped my eyes, turning streaks of the now brownish blood a crimson red color.

I turned the hot and cold nobs of the shower until I was content with the temperature of the water. I stepped into the shower, right foot first. A rush of relief finally coursed through me when I was directly underneath the spritz of water. I sighed and looked down, only to see bright red liquid taking over the bottom of the tub, then seconds later running down the drain.

Both the shower's waters and the Advil started working on my head, so it became just a light buzz of pain.

I put my face right below the water, scrubbed it with face soap, then let the water wash it away. I felt a lot fresher already. I continued rubbing my face beneath the water until I was positive there was no more blood on it.

I grabbed my loofah off of the hook on the shower wall, and scrubbed my body down to the core with my jasmine scented body soap. More and more blood got washed down the drain as I cleansed my skin. After I hung the loofah back on the wall, I finished off my shower by rubbing shampoo and conditioner into my hair, causing even more blood to go down the drain.

After I completely finished washing myself, I just stood there, letting the warm, silky water slither down my bare body.

Tear after tear, the memories of both tonight, and my childhood started to flood into my head. I sat down in the shower and just cried. I cried until I felt that there was no possible way I could ever cry again. Instead of one of the maddening memories, a single happy memory appeared in my brain. It was of Sky, and his family. And _me_. It was all of us, sitting at his dining room table smiling, _laughing_. That's when I sucked up the tears and actually smiled. I stood up and turned off the water. I stepped out of the shower, left foot first this time.

I grabbed my towel off of the sink and started to dry myself off. After drying my body, I softly rubbed the towel on my face and finally wrapped my hair in it. My light purple long-sleeved sweater was over sized, which is why I like wearing it for a pajama shirt. I threw on my black leggings and a pair of fuzzy green socks and walked back over to my room, after turning off the bathroom light. When I was in my room again, I closed the door and hung my towel back on it.

I grabbed my brush off of the dresser and ran it through my snarled hair until it was smooth and tangle-free. I returned the brush to where I found it and took another pill for the returning headache. I stretched my sore limbs, but stopped when I felt my stomach turn.

Slowly, I walked over to my bed that looked much more desirable then usual. I lifted the beige covers and slipped inside, curled up into a ball, and slowly drifted off into one of the deepest sleeps I'd ever been in.


	6. Chapter 6

_RING! RING! RING!_  
Before my alarm clock could ring for a fourth time I slammed the snooze button. I slowly turned my head to face the brightly lit numbers. _It's 6:30 am._  
"_Okay, I have a half hour until both my Aunt and Uncle wake up_." I thought to myself. I lifted myself out of bed, and the second I stood up straight I got a rush of pain to my head. "_I shouldn't be surprised, I mean I did get pulverized yesterday_."

I walked over toward my dresser and took some Advil. I held my hand over my temple as I walked into the bathroom to check if there was any visible damage. If there was, I'd have to come up with a way to cover it up. Or, I could just make up an excuse if all else fails.

When I was facing the mirror that hung above the sink, I lifted my head to see my reflection. Both my left cheek bone and my left temple were bruised pretty badly, and so was my forehead. My nose ached when I touched it, but there isn't any evidence of damage that you could see. I just can't let anyone near my nose today.

I then lifted up my sweater to see a decent sized bruise on my gut. That isn't a big deal though, because I'm obviously wearing a shirt to school.

"_I just have to figure out an excuse for these bruises_." I tapped the left side of my face, "_and of course why I was so late last night_." After a couple minutes of pondering, I came up with an excuse that was kind of lame, but it was better than nothing.

I proceeded on with my morning routine which included getting dressed, brushing my hair, washing my face, brushing my teeth and getting breakfast. I was in the kitchen pouring some Captain Crunch into a bowl when I heard my Aunt yawn from upstairs, followed by my uncles footsteps. I sighed.

"_Well, here goes nothing_." I thought. I turned to the direction of the stairs.

"Good morning Aunt, Good morning Uncle." I turned back to my bowl and added milk as they both finished making their way down the stairs.

"Yeah." Muttered my Uncle, but there wasn't any response from my Aunt. I returned the cereal box to it's cupboard and the milk to the fridge and sat down at the table. After some time of silence, my Aunt spoke up.

"So, Alex. I hope you've gotten your grades up like we talked about." I looked up at her, and she looked at me. Almost instantly her face went from annoyed to startled.

"Alex! What the hell happened to your face?!" She yelled, racing over toward me and touching my bruises. I cringed at the shock of pain that got sent through my face. She saw my reaction and when I didn't answer quick enough, she smacked me across the face. I wailed at her hand colliding against me and cupped my head in my hands.

"I'm sorry!" I cried out. "I was on my way home from the park after school and it was dark! I was running home so I wouldn't be late, and I ran into a girl on a bike!" I took a brake to sniffle. "We smashed into each other and I skidded against the concrete! I'm sorry!" I continued to hold my head with my hands, trying to stop it from stinging.

My uncle growled under his breath. "Good for nothing kid, can't even watch where she's going."  
"I'm sorry, it won't happen again! I'm sorry!" I apologized, hoping they'd let me off of the hook. I lifted my head up and looked my Aunt in the eyes. "I'm sorry."

All she did was roll her eyes. "Just get out of my face, go to school. We'll talk about it later."  
I scrambled to my feet and thanked her. After putting my bowl in the dishwasher and grabbing another couple pills for my head, I ran out the door toward the school.

When I was only a couple blocks away, I pulled out my pocket mirror. My bruises were pretty bad, so there wasn't any way to hide them from anyone at school.  
"_I could just sit in the nurses office all day after first period_..." I thought.

I walked up to my locker and pulled out my Geometry textbook and some pens. I popped a couple more Advil's into my mouth and head off to class. After having several people comment about my bruises, I took the clip out of my hair and had my bangs hang over my face.  
Much better.

I arrived at the classroom and took my seat at the back of the room and lowered my head onto my desk.  
"Hey, Alex! Is that you?!" Sky's voice rang through the room. I lifted my head back off of my desk and greeted him.  
"_I forgot about Sky_!" I thought.  
"Oh, hi Sky." I smiled.  
"Uh, Alex? You've got your hair in your face, here let me-" He started to push my bangs behind my ears when he saw the uncovered bruises. He paused and furrowed his brow.  
"What are those?" He questioned.  
I looked down at my desk. "Sorry."  
"How did those get there over night?" There was a long pause and the first bell rang.  
"I'll tell you after school." I lifted my head once again and Sky nodded unsure and headed to his seat. I raised my hand and got sent to the nurses office and hung out there until 10 minutes before the end of the final period.

"Okay Alex, you need to finish at least the last few minutes of class. See you, I hope you feel better."  
I waved and thanked the nurse for keeping me there. After I put my book back into my locker I headed to English. When I walked in the room, everyone turned and stared at me. I just walked to my seat and put my head down.

I felt a finger tap on my shoulder not even 10 seconds after I had rested my head on my desk, and raised it to see Sky with a concerned look on his face.

"You didn't say that you'd be in the nurse all day. Does it hurt that bad?" He pointed to my bruises.  
I just pouted at him. "Walk home with me, I'll explain it then. Okay?"  
"Humph. Fine." He sat on my desk and told me about the classes I missed for the remainder of the period. When the bell finally rang, the whole class poured out at once. Everyone was excited about not having school for the rest of the week because of parent teacher conferences and other events.

A few people chuckled at me as I walked out of the school with Sky. Some people pointed and made stupid remarks. For some reason, Kate wasn't there today. At least, I hadn't seen her.

"Sky, was Kate here today?" I asked kind of quietly, shuffling the books in my hands around a bit.  
"Yeah, came in late. Why do you ask?" He tilted his head towards me.  
"You asked me how I got these bruises, right?"  
"Don't tell me.. she did that to you? How, you were at my house?!" He sounded frustrated and confused.

I popped 2 more Advil's in my mouth and swallowed so my headache would stay away.

"On the way home I bumped into her. She got a good amount of punches and kicks at my head in, my stomach too. That's what happened."  
"So you're telling me that she did this to you because you bumped into her on accident? That was her reason?"  
"And because I bumped into her at school, remember?" I added.  
"That's bullshit!" He yelled, throwing his hands up in the air.  
"It fine." I put my hand on his shoulder, "I'm used to it, it isn't the first time. It's okay." My attempt at calming him down was a failure, it just fired him up even more.

"What do you mean it wasn't the first time? She's done this before? Why?"  
I looked down at my feet while I was walking. "Just 'cause. I told you, they don't like me."

It was silent for a couple minutes.

"Can I come over?" He finally said. I looked up at him with confusion. "I want you to tell me everything. Your story, why you're  
here. Why people dislike you, what your family is like, everything. I want to get to know you, so I can protect you."

I was in complete shock. I stopped walking and stared at him with wide eyes. He turned to face me and gave me a small smile.  
_We've only known each other for two days, and I already feel like I can trust him with anything. I can't believe it._  
I finally calmed down and said, "One condition. You have to do the same."

His grin grew and then shrank again, "Okay, but you go first."


End file.
